


safe with me

by ava_kay



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Cuddling, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Fluff and Angst, Kissing, M/M, Post Death Cure, Safe Haven, gally is guilty over chuck, mention of the gladers getting drunk, minho brenda and frypan ship it, minho teases thomas, post tdc, soft, soft thomally, thomas is guilty over everything
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-14
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2019-04-22 23:11:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14319150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ava_kay/pseuds/ava_kay
Summary: it’s been six months since they arrived at the safe haven, and things are still slightly uncomfortable between thomas and gally. but as it turns out, they might need each other more than they thought.





	1. one

Thomas swings his door open with a huff, ready to tell whoever is on the other side to leave him alone til he’s gotten at least another two hours of sleep, but is stopped when he sees Vince.

    “What’s going on?” Thomas asks groggily, leaning against the door and struggling not to doze off up against it.

    “I’m gonna need you to help out with plans for the new hut today,” Vince says. “Go around, see who needs to go where, and start making arrangements.”

    Thomas almost groans. “Why would that be under my authority?” He’s aware how childish he sounds, but right now he couldn’t care less. They could all take _his_ hut, he’ll settle for sleeping in a sand dune at this point.

    “Listen, Thomas, you’re lucky you got your own place to sleep. Other people have to huddle together in hammocks still. I’m trusting you to help maintain order in this place, and that means figuring this kind of thing out,” Vince says, his tone telling Thomas it’s time to resign from his protesting.

    “Fine, when do I start?” Thomas asks, hoping for at least an hour.

    “Now. I’m pairing you up with Gally, and he doesn’t have all day,” Vince says.

    Thomas lets out a sigh at that one. For one, he has to go _now_ , and on top of that, he’ll be working with Gally.

    He doesn’t not like Gally. That’s not it. But with Minho, Brenda, Fry, even _Aris_ , the conversation just flows smoothly. With Gally things are still… odd.

    That being said, they’ve built a mutual respect and something Thomas would dare to call a friendship. Since they’ve gotten to the safe haven, Gally has been different. Good different. Minho and Fry more than once have mentioned to Thomas that he seems more like himself from _before_ the Changing.

    But with all their history, Thomas doesn’t even know if Gally forgives _him_. And whenever he looks at Gally, part of him still sees Chuck, even though the logical part of his brain tells him it wasn’t Gally’s fault.

    So, ‘odd’ is the word for their dynamic. And spending a day with him isn’t Thomas’ biggest motivator at the moment.

    “Alright,” Thomas says. Vince nods curtly and turns to leave, Thomas wondering in the back of his mind if there’s a way out of his situation.

    Just as he’s about to close the door, a tall figure is suddenly in front of him, seemingly having pushed off from the side of the wall, almost making Thomas jump.

    It’s Gally, wearing a fitted t-shirt that seems a bit _too_ fitted as the material strains against his muscles, his arms crossed as he looks at Thomas.

    “Looks like you’re stuck with me, Greenie,” Gally says in his usual unreadable tone, then giving Thomas a once-over. “I’ll give you five minutes to get dressed, meet me in the kitchen.”

    Thomas is given no time to respond before Gally’s turned around and walking away already, leaving him in a tired daze. Today’s going to be a long one.

 

  
Thomas arrives at the kitchen ten minutes later, worried Gally will be annoyed at him for how much time he took. Whenever he complains about his lack of sleep or is late, everyone that wasn’t lucky enough to get a unit yet in their first big hut just glares at him. He’s got no excuses.

    He’s expecting that same annoyed look from Gally, despite the fact that he also got his own unit, but instead is met with a half smile as he walks in, Gally looking up from talking to Frypan. They’re sat at a bench eating, and Gally nods over to the counter, a tray of food sitting on top of it.

    “Eat up,” Gally says. “Fry made us extra.”

    “You’re welcome,” Frypan smiles, taking another bite of his food.

    “Thanks,” Thomas says groggily, walking over to the food and taking it gladly before sitting on the bench opposite the two boys. He’s too tired to socialize, having to do everything in his power not to pass out on top of his breakfast.

    Listening to Gally and Frypan talk, Thomas remembers a few things Fry had told him. Apparently back in the Glade, mostly before Gally had gone through the Changing, him and Fry were best friends. They got on well from the start. After the Changing, things became different. But watching them now, Fry seems to be really happy to have Gally back.

    Thomas has only ever known Gally after going through three years of the maze and the Changing. He always wonders what he was like when he first arrived; scared, young, curious. He’ll give him one thing, he did a great job building the Glade. For a few teenagers with barely any resources, he really made that place a home for them.

    After a few minutes, Thomas getting to finish his meal, Gally stands up and thanks Frypan for the food, before nodding to Thomas.

    When they get outside, Thomas feels bad about how he’d acted when he found out he’d be with Gally. He’s been nothing but good to Thomas since he rescued the group of them outside the Last City.

    “Hey, listen Gally, about before,” Thomas starts. “I didn’t mean to—”

    “It’s fine,” Gally dismisses it. “I wasn’t exactly expecting you to be thrilled.”

    “No,” Thomas stops in his tracks, Gally turning to him once he realizes. “I’m just tired, it wasn’t about you. I’m sorry. Really.”

    Gally seems to be a bit thrown off by Thomas’ sincereness, but nods. “Don’t worry about it, Greenie.”

    Thomas nods back and they continue heading off, ready to start making plans for the new huts.

 

  
“I’m telling you, it should be separated.”

    “And I’m telling _you_ , that it would be a waste of materials and space,” Gally says, exasperated.

    “But my way there’s room between them, this way it's just one big block,” Thomas says.

    “Listen, I’ve been a builder for four years, I think I know what I’m talking about a bit more than you do,” Gally says.

    Thomas rolls his eyes. “Yeah, you can build, but can you plan? We need more room, and spacing each one will—”

    “You’re really starting to tick me off, Thomas,” Gally says quickly, his glare more like a warning.

    “Yeah, well, same to you,” Thomas shoots back.

    The two of them stay with their eyes locked on each other for a moment, Thomas’ anger flaring up. Suddenly, Newt’s words about the builders not having a lot going on upstairs come back to him.

    And then, he’s not in the mood to fight anymore.

    “Whatever, Gally,” Thomas storms off. He leaves the hut in a hurry, trying to make it obvious that he doesn’t want to be bothered anymore, but apparently the message wasn’t as clear to Gally.

    “Where are you going? We need to figure this out,” Gally says, catching up to Thomas who only walks faster.

    “I don’t know why Vince asked me to do this in the first place, you’re the builder, do it your way,” Thomas says.

    Gally grabs Thomas’ arm and stops him, forcing him to look at him. Thomas reluctantly looks at him, huffing. He doesn’t feel like dealing with this now. “What?”

    Gally searches his face for a moment before speaking. “I know you still hate me, but we have to get through this. Just try to be objective, alright?”

    Thomas looks down at Gally’s hand on his arm and Gally immediately takes it away, his intimidating nature becoming not-so-threatening for a moment. His tone and manner make Thomas pause, suddenly not as keen on leaving.

    “You think I still hate you?” Thomas asks.

    Gally’s eyes seem to have a hard time finding Thomas’ as he talks. “It doesn’t bother me, Greenie, but we have work to do.”

    “Why would you think that?” Thomas asks. Until today, they’d been getting along just fine since they’d gotten here, or at least that's what Thomas had thought.

    “You’re not great at hiding it, and despite what you may think, I’m not stupid,” Gally says. “But like I said, it doesn’t matter. Like it or not, you have to cooperate sometimes.”

    “I don’t hate you, Gally. Not anymore, anyway. Since you helped us in the Last City…” Thomas trails off. “The Glade, all that, that’s behind us.”

    Gally looks at him, his jaw hardening. “Alright.”

    Thomas nods. “Your idea, the group building. Let’s try it that way.”

    Gally raises an eyebrow. “Are you sure? Because with your way, there could be some advantages.”

    “I’m sure,” Thomas manages a weak smile. “My idea makes no sense. I’m a Greenie, what do I know?”

    Gally smiles back, nodding back over to the hut. “Help me draw up the plans, then?”

    “Sure,” Thomas agrees. He might as well get it over with, and besides, maybe working with Gally won’t be so bad.

 

  
Thomas groans, Minho’s smile turning into a frown.

    “Don’t act _too_ excited,” Minho says.

    “Sorry, I’m just…” Thomas trails off.

    “Tired?” Minho asks. “So am I, but c’mon, we haven’t had a bonfire for a while. It’ll be fun.”

    It had been another night of no sleep, and Thomas is exhausted. Since they’d gotten to work on the new hut, Thomas is working all day, making the idea of a bonfire sound unappealing.

    “I don’t know, Minho,” Thomas says.

    “If I don’t see you there, I’m marching into that fancy room of yours and dragging you out by the ear,” Minho says.

    Thomas sighs. “Fine, I’ll come. But don’t expect me to be chatty.”

    “Why would I? You only talk when nobody wants you to,” Minho smirks. Thomas doesn’t laugh, making Minho hit him on the arm. “Brighten up, shank. I’ve convinced Gally to make his drink again, so we’ll have a good time.”

    Minho sadly isn’t making the case he thinks he is, the drink bringing back memories of the one Glade bonfire he’d been to. Newt gave him Gally’s drink, and the thought makes his stomach turn. He should be here.

    “I’m gonna go take an hour long nap before you drag me to this,” Thomas says, standing up from the log he’d been sitting on. He turns to Minho, trying to make his next words as since as possible. “I’m sure it’ll be great, man.”

    “It will be, which is why I’m forcing you to come,” Minho says. “Now get your beauty rest. You really need it.”

    Thomas flips his best friend off, but smiles at his teasing anyway. Minho has been through a lot, and he talks about it sometimes, but lately he seems to be trying to just move on and be happy. Thomas wants him to be happy. Newt would have wanted that too.

    The smile disappears from Thomas’ face when he turns away, setting off for his hut with heavy eyelids and a heavy heart.


	2. two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: drinking

A knock on Thomas’ door startles him out of sleep, shooting up and automatically putting a hand on his stomach. It’s become a habit, touching the place he’d gotten shot six months before. He’s healed now, but his nightmares tell different stories.

    He reaches up and wipes his forehead, feeling the sweat coating his skin. The knocking hasn’t stopped, he’s realized, so he has to deal with the person behind it.

    “Minho, you’re gonna give me a headache, just come in,” Thomas says, his breathing still trying to calm down.

    There’s a few moments of silence before the door opens, a taller figure taking up the doorway. Gally.

    “Not Minho, actually,” he says timidly, meeting Thomas’ eyes after a moment. “But he sent me.”

    Thomas sits up, suddenly feeling self conscious. “Um. Okay, uh, there’s no way I can get out of this, right?”

    “I don’t think so,” Gally says. “Minho’s pretty insistent.”

    “Of course he is,” Thomas says. There’s something in Gally’s gaze that’s distracting him. He can’t place it, the only thing he’s able to see being that he looks mildly uncomfortable.

    “I’d get out there soon. He told me to tell you to get up before you and your ear regret it,” Gally says.

    Thomas rolls his eyes. “I’ll be out there in a minute.”

    Gally nods, standing there for an awkward extra moment before walking away and closing the door. Thomas furrows his eyebrows once he’s gone, then shakes his head in dismissal. He’ll never get that guy.

    He’s ready quickly, really only having to put on shoes. While he’s walking out to the bonfire, he takes in everything around him. The stars shining above him, the breeze coming off of the ocean, the smell of smoke and fire, the buzz of talking and laughing from the group. It’s nice, and something he’d never imagined he’d have.

    A part of him feels undeserving, having lost so many of his friends to get here. He can’t fully enjoy it, knowing he should have gotten Newt, Teresa, Chuck, _everyone_ here. So, on nights like these, everyone sitting together happily, Thomas is quiet.

    Once he’s there, Minho greets him with a bright smile, handing him a drink.

    “Drink up, put a smile on that face,” Minho says, poking Thomas’ cheek. He’s clearly ahead of him on that one.

    Thomas nods and gives Minho a weak smile before he walks him over to where he’d been sitting, the group of them busy engaged in their conversations. His eyes lock on Gally’s—who’s been looking in his direction since he’d gotten out there—and Gally looks away quickly, turning back to Fry, who seems to have been talking the whole time.

    He ignores the oddness of the situation, sitting at the end of the log next to Minho. While everyone else talks, he takes a long sip of his drink, gagging on the liquid as it burns his throat and hoping nobody notices.

    “You’ll get used to it after awhile,” Thomas hears. He looks up to see Gally looking at him, sitting at the end of the log nearest to him.

    “What?” Thomas asks, distracted by the eyes on him.

    “The drink,” Gally says, holding up his own. “It takes a while.”

    “Oh,” Thomas says, feeling stupid. “It’s a bit… strong.”

    “Yeah,” Gally lets out a laugh. “You should have seen everyone the first time I made it. I’d convinced Fry to let me mess around in the kitchen, and I handed it out and it was the best night we’d ever had. Half of it was spit out, and the other half made us all sick for two days. When Newt—”

    Gally stops talking abruptly as Thomas snaps his head up, feeling that tightening in his chest he gets when Newt is mentioned. He can tell Gally feels bad, so he tries to push the feeling down.

    “It’s fine,” Thomas says. “Go on.”

    “Are you sure?” Gally says, looking hesitant.

    “I’m sure,” Thomas says. He is. Besides, even though it hurts, hearing stories about Newt helps keep him alive in some way.

    “Well… Newt drank a lot of it right away, and he started choking. Minho made fun of him, even though he’d done the same, so Newt just looked him right in the eye and chugged the rest of it,” Gally says, looking down while he talks and a small smile forming on his face.

    “The whole thing?” Thomas asks, thinking about the taste. That’d be nearly impossible.

    “The whole thing. It was impressive for a few minutes before he started throwing it up,” Gally laughs. “After that, though, I had never seen Newt smile so much. That was the first night where we were actually kinda happy.”

    Thomas smiles at the thought of Newt being happy, messing around like teenagers should. He’s thankful Gally gave them all that chance, to just laugh and forget the fact that the weight of the world was on their shoulders for a while.

    “That sounds like a fun night,” Thomas says. He wonders if he’d been watching them, amused at the whole ordeal. Even though WCKD must have provided him with a bed, clean clothes, food and water, he still wishes he’d been sent into the maze earlier. With Newt, Minho, Alby, Gally, Fry, all the gladers that had been there for all that time.

    “It was about as close to fun as we ever got,” Gally says. “The _best_ reaction from it, though, was when we got...”

    Gally’s face suddenly darkens. The light from the fire only illuminates half of him, but there’s no mistaking the look he gets.

    “Gally, are you alright?” Thomas asks, reaching out to touch Gally’s arm. But he stands up before Thomas can reach him, looking at Thomas, shaking his head and mumbling something inaudible before walking off, leaving his drink on the ground.

    Thomas puts his drink down too and follows him, watching him walk towards the huts. He has to half walk and half jog to catch up once Gally gets to his door, Thomas coming up behind him.

    “Gally, talk to me man,” Thomas says, Gally not turning to face him, looking down.

    “There’s nothing to talk about,” Gally says, his tone more snippy than it had been before. “Just go back.”

    Thomas gets the urge to be alone more than anyone, but what had brought on Gally’s? “I’m not leaving ’til you tell me.”

    “You’ve always been too stubborn, Greenie,” Gally says, half looking at Thomas. His anger falters, sounding more forced than genuine. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

    “Did _I_ do something?” Thomas asks.

    “No,” Gally shakes his head. “For once,” he adds as an afterthought, a small forced smile tugging at his lips for a split second before disappearing.

    Thomas thinks about what Gally had been saying before he got up. Something about the best reaction, when they got…

    Then it hits him. He might not be right, but if he is, he can understand why Gally’s being the way he is.

    “I understand if you don’t want to tell me,” Thomas says. “But I get it, okay? At least let me help.”

    “I just want to be alone,” Gally says, his tone getting angrier again. But Thomas knows by now that the anger is just a lie.

    “Do you?” Thomas says.

    Gally’s hardened face softens as he turns fully to Thomas, following a moment of tense silence, Thomas regretting his words. His eyes seems to search Thomas’ face for a moment, before turning around, opening the door and walking in.

    Thomas is worried that Gally’s going to close the door in his face, but instead he keeps it open, facing Thomas again. Does he want him to come in?

    His suspicions are confirmed when Gally gestures inside awkwardly, looking at Thomas expectantly. He’s _really_ letting him inside.

    Thomas quickly glances behind him to the bonfire, feeling bad for ditching Minho. But he didn’t want to be there much anyway, and Gally’s a valid reason.

    He walks into Gally’s hut, trying to subtly look around it. Gally’s bed is tidy, as is most everything else. He doesn’t own a lot, but he seems to have made the place his own, a few of the architectural details very clearly added by him.

    There looks to be a nearly completed chair in the middle of the room that Gally points to now.

    “You can sit on it, it’s sturdy, I just haven’t finished the back of it,” Gally says, sitting down on his bed.

    Thomas nods, sitting down to face him. You’d think that after everything he’s been through, simple things like this wouldn’t give him anxiety. But they do. Especially now, since he hasn’t got a clue what to say.

    “Do you want to talk about it?” Thomas asks, inwardly cringing. He already knows the answer to this.

    Instead of the immediate ‘no’ Thomas is expecting, Gally just looks down at the floor, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. He doesn’t speak for a moment, Thomas bouncing his knee to distract himself from the uncomfortableness of the situation.

    “I’m sorry that I didn’t go with you to escape the maze,” Gally says, looking up at Thomas.

    “We’re past all that,” Thomas says, surprised by Gally’s words.

    “I did a lot of thinking between then and now,” Gally says. “I regret it all. Every single thing I did.”

    “It wasn’t your fault, Gally,” Thomas says, shaking his head. He would never have believed the words coming out of his mouth a year ago, but something is different now.

    “How wasn’t it my fault?” Gally says, his voice weak. Thomas can see tears forming in his eyes and is stunned. He’s never really gotten to see this side of Gally before, and now that he has, he feels worse than ever.

    “You were scared,” Thomas says. “Nobody can blame you for that. You never wanted anyone to get hurt.”

    “What about Chuck?” Gally asks, a tear escaping him. “I killed him, I almost killed _you_.”

    Thomas’ heart hurts at the mention of Chuck. As much as he wants to blame Gally, he can’t.

    “You weren’t _you_ ,” Thomas says softly. “He jumped in front of me, you couldn’t have known that.” Getting the words out is physically painful, the memory still too much to bear.

    “I still did it,” Gally says. “He’s gone, and it’s my fault. He should be here, not me.”

    “Don’t say that,” Thomas says. “You deserve to be here as much as he did.”

    “That’s not true, and you know it,” Gally says. “When I woke up, I was still jacked up and in a lot of pain, but as soon as I could move I went over to Chuck. I was horrified.”

    Thomas can’t seem to find words that would be a suitable response, so he listens, hoping something will come to him.

    “I liked the kid. Never disliked him. He was like all of our little brother,” Gally says, staring off into the corner of the room.

    “Were you gonna tell me a story about him before?” Thomas asks hesitantly. Gally nods, still not meeting Thomas’ gaze.

    “I let him try my drink. It was his first week there, he was still all shaken up and alone. Quiet, if you can believe it,” Gally starts. “So I handed it to him and told him he was one of us now. He took it and drank a bit too much before it hit him, so he spit it all out and ran around yelling to everyone that he was poisoned and his throat was burning. Stuck his face in the water, too. That’s when we decided that he’d be a Slopper.”

    Gally wipes a tear from his face and shakes his head. “But after that, he was happier. More talkative. More… Chuck.”

    “It’s nice that you did that for him,” Thomas says.

    “He only got a month. One month of memories. That’s it,” Gally says. “But why am I telling _you_ that? I’m sure you’ve thought that a thousand times before.”

    Gally’s right. Thomas _has_ thought about all this before. How unfair it is that Chuck got no time, how he should be here. But that’s not Gally’s fault. Not really.

    “Chuck would forgive you,” Thomas says. Gally looks up at him, Thomas continuing. “He’d know it wasn’t your fault. He wouldn’t want you to be so hard on yourself.”

    “Like I shouldn’t be?” Gally asks. “I was horrible to _everyone_.”

    “No, you shouldn’t be. You’re different now, the fact that you feel so bad shows it,” Thomas says, putting a hand on Gally’s arm before he can stop himself.

    Gally looks down at it and Thomas hesitates, his instincts telling him to move it, but he doesn’t. Eventually, he looks back up at Thomas, his voice lowering.

    “How can you even look at me?” he asks.

    “Did you not just hear everything I said, shank?” Thomas says, giving him a small smile at the Glade slang. “I forgive you.”

    It takes Gally a few moments to respond, seemingly unsure of how to process everything happening. Thomas feels the same way, but he’s glad for this. Understanding Gally deeper.

    “Thank you,” Gally says. “Really.”

    Thomas nods and takes his hand away, Gally glancing at it before back at the other boy.

    “I meant it,” Thomas says.

    After a moment of silence, Gally gets up. “You should probably get back out there.”

    Thomas gets up too, looking behind him. “Yeah, I probably should.” The two of them walk over to the door, Gally on Thomas’ heels. “Are you coming too?”

    “I’m just gonna stay here,” Gally says.

    “You sure? Minho will be disappointed,” Thomas says, finally reaching the door.

    “I’m sure none of them will notice,” Gally says.

    Thomas turns around to Gally and gets an overwhelming urge to hug the guy. He thinks so little of himself, and maybe Thomas had hated him for a while, but he’s not a bad person. Thomas actually cares for him, and he deserves to be happy. He’s here now. And he’s been forgiven.

    So that’s what he does. He goes to hug Gally… But apparently Gally had different plans.

    As Thomas leans in, Gally’s lips find his.

    Thomas immediately feels his heart leap into his throat, instinctually closing his eyes. Before he can even process what’s happening, he’s kissing back, his mind racing with a million thoughts that he can’t figure out.

    This isn’t happening. Gally’s hands are not holding the sides of Thomas’ face. Thomas’ hand is not on Gally’s back, feeling the curve of it and how warm he is even through his shirt. Thomas and Gally are _not_ kissing.

    It couldn’t have been more than ten seconds. It felt like the blink of an eye, but also a thousand years somehow, but before Thomas can even think about that, it’s over.

    Gally pulls away first, looking down at Thomas with wide eyes and pink lips, removing his hands from Thomas’ face. His expression seems to mirror Thomas’ feelings, looking completely stunned at his own actions.

    Thomas can’t even form words, trying to think about the situation. Gally just _kissed_ him, he just spilled out his feelings and kissed Thomas. He hasn’t been getting a lot of sleep, but this is too weird to have been some hallucination because he would never in a million years have thought of this.

    They both seem to be waiting for the other to talk, emotions and confusion clouding Thomas’ brain.

    “I-I’m… I’m sorry,” Gally says, his voice shaky.

    “Don’t be sorry,” Thomas says quickly, Gally already having moved around him.

    Gally opens the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

    If Thomas wasn’t so stunned, he would ask Gally why he kissed him. He would ask Gally why he was asking Thomas to leave. Normally he’s predictable, but lately Thomas can’t make sense of anything he does.

    “I’ll see you tomorrow,” Thomas says in his daze, awkwardly hesitating before walking out the door, turning to watch Gally close it quickly behind him.

    As soon as he starts heading down towards the bonfire, he thinks of a thousand questions, but he can’t go back. Definitely not now.

    His former enemy. That’s basically what Gally is. How long has he felt this way? Or did he think that’s what Thomas was going to do? Either way, he went for it. He didn’t even know Gally had an interest in guys in general, let alone the one he’d hated until a few months ago.

    Minho meets Thomas as he comes back down, interrupting his thoughts.

    “Where’ve you been, dude? You’re missing all the fun,” he says, a grin on his face.

    “Sorry, I’m here now,” Thomas says, forcing the words out. He debates telling Minho what just happened, but he knows he’d ask too many questions. Questions _Thomas_ doesn’t even have the answers to yet.

    He spends the rest of the night silent, only halfly joining conversations with Minho when he’s made to. But the only thing on his mind is Gally. 


	3. three

Thomas doesn’t want to get up today. Getting up means seeing Gally, and seeing Gally means having to talk about what happened last night.

    It’s not like Thomas necessarily… hated it. The amount he didn’t hate it scares him, actually. He certainly hadn’t thought about it til it happened, but now that it has, he can’t stop thinking about the little things.

    How the sunlight makes Gally’s freckles stand out. The ocean color of his eyes. His defined jawline that hardens further when he’s annoyed. How, lately, he’ll get this soft smile that he doesn’t seem to think anyone sees. Not to mention the obvious things, like how muscular he is and the fact that he towers over Thomas in a wonderfully intimidating way.

    Not that Thomas has noticed or anything.

    They have to talk about this. But Thomas has been up all night thinking about what to say and he can’t come up with a single thing. Does Gally want this to be a regular thing? Was it a mistake?

    It takes Thomas another half hour or so to get out of bed, grabbing whatever clothes seem cleanest. They have the younger kids washing clothes, and they don’t seem to mind much. The lot of them get along nicely, and sometimes they even remind Thomas of younger versions of the Gladers. Even after what they’ve been through, it’s nice to see that they’re still smiling. It’s a good thing they never had to go into the maze. Maybe they won’t be as damaged as Thomas and his friends are. They get to live, now.

    Thomas goes outside and heads to the kitchen, hoping Gally won’t be there. He needs more time to think of what to say, but if he sees Gally before that, he can’t let any time pass. They’ll never get back to their new normal that way.

    When he walks in, Fry is the only one of his friends in there, busy at work but looking up when Thomas walks in.

    “He lives!” Frypan smiles in the infectious way only he can, nodding Thomas over.

    “Hey, Fry,” Thomas says, giving him a weak smile.

    Frypan begins making Thomas a tray of food, shaking his head with an amused look on his face. It sparks anxiety in Thomas, knowing how close he is to Gally.

    “What?” Thomas asks. Fry doesn’t answer for a moment, Thomas’ heart racing.

    “The usual, sleepyhead,” Fry says, handing him his tray. “Back in the Glade, _I_ was the one that slept all the time. Just thinking about how I’ve been dethroned.”

    Thomas wants to point out the fact that he didn’t do a lot of sleeping last night because of _Frypan’s_ best friend, but instead he rolls his eyes, letting out a slight laugh of relief due to the fact that it doesn’t have anything to do with Gally.

    “Sorry to steal your title,” Thomas says sarcastically, before turning with his tray.

    His relief is short lived, almost dropping his food upon looking up.

    Gally’s looking back at him a few feet away, just as frozen as he is. Thomas opens his mouth to speak, but no words come out. After a prolonged moment, Gally talks before he does.

    “You gonna move?” he asks with a huff, his expression hardening from a shocked one to a serious one, nodding behind him.

    Thomas searches for a response, but settles instead for stepping to his left, Gally walking right past him to Fry.

    “Hey, I don’t have a lot of time today,” Gally greets Fry quickly, his eyes completely avoiding Thomas’. The annoyance at Gally’s ignoring him is enough to make Thomas think up an actual statement, turning to Gally now.

    “Can we talk?” Thomas asks, trying to make the words come out confidently.

    “I just said I don’t have time today, Greenie,” Gally says, barely glancing at him. “I _know_ you heard me.”

    Thomas looks at Frypan, who seems to be even more confused than Thomas as he makes Gally his food.

    “It’ll just take a second, come on,” Thomas asks again. Gally doesn’t give, still staring ahead.

    “Fry, could I just have that without the tray? I’m in a hurry,” Gally says, Thomas scoffing.

    “You’re a bad actor, you know that, Gally?” Thomas says, his anger building up. Gally kissed _him_ , he doesn’t have the right to play this kind of game.

    “Thanks, I’ll keep it in mind,” Gally says, taking the sandwich from Fry and nodding to him, before walking away.

    Thomas sets down his tray and follows him, laughing humorlessly. “I don’t know why I expected any different from you.”

    “Any different what?” Gally asks, still set on walking towards the construction of the new hut.

    “I think by now you know that I wasn’t born yesterday,” Thomas says. “We need to talk.”

    “There’s nothing to talk about,” Gally says, getting closer to his destination.

    “I have no problem refreshing your memory,” Thomas says. “Need me to tell you?”

    Gally takes a minute to respond to that. “Why do we need to _talk_?”

    “Because of this, the way you’re acting right now,” Thomas says. Gally turns abruptly, throwing him off.

    “What did you expect?” Gally asks, looking down at the other boy. “We have nothing to say to each other.”

    “You don’t know what I have to say,” Thomas says.

    “Yeah, I do,” Gally says, quickly rolling his eyes and looking at a point behind Thomas.

    “No, you don’t,” Thomas says. When Gally doesn’t answer, he continues. “Go work, whatever. But meet me at my hut after.”

    “Or?” Gally asks. He’s squinting down at him, due to the sun in his eyes, and it makes the angry demeanor about him seem a little less believable. As frustrated as Thomas is with Gally, he can’t help but find it kind of cute. _Did I really just think that?_

    “Or, I’ll come to you,” Thomas says. “Your choice.”

    Gally just looks at him, shaking his head. “Whatever.”

    That’ll have to be enough. The both of them walk away at the same time, Thomas hearing Gally huff behind him. Why Thomas is even bothering, he has no clue.

 

  
He’d intended to take a nap after doing a bit of work, but wound up staying awake, brainstorming what to say to Gally. Thomas was only half expecting him to actually show up, so when he hears the knock at his door, he jumps.

    “Come in,” Thomas says loudly, standing up from his bed.

    The door opens, revealing an unreadable as ever Gally.

    “I didn’t wake you, did I?” Gally asks, his tone crossing over from sincere to guarded.

    “No, you didn’t,” Thomas says, playing with the hem of his shirt as Gally closes the door and turns back to Thomas, crossing his arms. His extremely noticeable muscles aren’t exactly helping Thomas’ concentration, but he persists nonetheless, tearing his eyes away from them.

    “What’d you want to talk about?” Gally asks, shrugging his shoulders.

    “You know what I want to talk about,” Thomas says, his tone soft, hoping Gally will follow.

    “I apologized,” Gally says, avoiding Thomas’ gaze. “I don’t know what else you want from me.”

    “Gally, I don’t want an apology. There’s nothing to apologize for,” Thomas says truthfully, taking a brave step towards Gally.

    He meets Thomas’ eyes now, narrowing them. “Alright then, what _do_ you want? An explanation? It was the drink. Simple as that.”

    Thomas feels a pang in his chest at his words… disappointment? Does that even make sense? Sure, since last night, Thomas’ view of Gally has been altered slightly. But he didn’t think he’d be disappointed.

    “Okay,” he says, nodding his head. “I just… I don’t want things to be like this between us anymore.”

    “Be like what?” Gally asks too quickly, his eyes widening for a split second.

    “Tense. We need to work this out,” Thomas says.

    “Isn’t that what we just did?” Gally asks.

    “See? That’s what I mean, we were _finally_ getting somewhere. Now we’re back to square one,” Thomas says.

    “I don’t know what to tell you,” Gally says, Thomas trying to maintain his calm.

    “I want you to tell me that you won’t act like _this_ ,” Thomas says.

    “You know what? I don’t know what you’re talking about, Greenie,” Gally says, starting to turn.

    Thomas’ mind goes into hyperdrive, and his next words come out in a worried hurry. “I’m not upset that you kissed me.” Gally pauses, his expression getting softer. Thomas continues, hoping to keep him there. “Maybe I was a little surprised, but I’m not angry. Whether you meant it or not, I didn’t mind it.”

    He _didn’t_ mind it. That might even be an understatement, considering how much he’s thought about it and played it over in his head. If Gally really didn’t mean it at all, then he’s just embarrassed himself greatly. But he doesn’t care.

    “You don’t sleep a lot, do you, Thomas?” Gally asks after a long pause. Thomas furrows his eyebrows, shaking his head.

    “Not as much as everyone else thinks,” Thomas says, deciding to go with it.

    “Yeah. Me neither,” Gally says. “I get up in time, but I don’t get a lot of sleep.”

    “Gally, what does this have to do with—”

    “Since the maze, I _can’t_ sleep. I’m up all night seeing it all in flashes. Everything we went through, Chuck, Newt, everyone,” Gally says. Thomas’ face drops at the mention of the names, before Gally continues. “I know you’ve been going through the same thing. We’ve got that in common.”

    “We do,” Thomas says, nodding reassuringly.

    “I’m not exactly the vulnerable type,” Gally says. “So last night, I just… I don’t know what I was doing. I don’t know how to let my guard down, I kinda got used to just focusing on survival. Now that it’s quiet, it’s louder than ever.”

    Thomas is dumbfounded, wondering why he’d never seen this side of Gally before yesterday. But he could definitely get used to it.

    “You’ve got me, y’know,” Thomas says. “I mean, this was all _my_ fault, anyway. I get the feeling.”

    “Don’t say that,” Gally objects.

    “Really? Because I’m pretty sure you’ve told me that exact thing before,” Thomas says, referring to their time in the Glade.

    “Yeah, well, I didn’t know what I was talking about,” Gally says. “You saved them. Not me.”

    “Minho never would have gotten here without you, you saved Newt’s _life_ from that train, you rescued all of those immune kids, then Minho, Newt and me from those WCKD guards. You did a lot a lot of saving,” Thomas says, neglecting to acknowledge his praise. Although his words don’t change Thomas’ mind, they carry an unexpected weight. It means a lot to Thomas to know he’s not still blamed by Gally, even if he still blames himself.

    “Technically it was Lawrence, and he used you. The Newt thing—” Gally starts, before stopping himself. “Thanks.”

    “Doesn’t matter how or why. You saved them,” Thomas says. “Newt told me you were a true friend to him back in the Glade. I believe that. You’re not a bad person, Gally. You never have been.”

    Gally nods, looking down at his feet. “I guess that’s why I did what I did yesterday,” he says. “What you told me… I felt like you saw me differently than I did and understood everything; what I’m going through. Got caught up in it, I guess.”

    “Do you…” Thomas trails off, the words getting caught in his chest. He can’t believe he’s actually about to say this out loud—to _Gally_ , of all people. “Do you have any sort of feelings for me? Or was it just—”

    Thomas cuts himself off when Gally looks up, his hands in his pockets now. The way he’s standing, his expression—he looks five years younger than before.

    “Does that even matter?” Gally asks.

    “Why wouldn’t it matter?” Thomas asks, the question making no sense to him.

    “I don’t know,” Gally says with a frustrated sigh, shifting on his feet. “I don’t know _anything_.”

    “That’s okay.” Thomas nods, taking another step forward. “You don’t need to know everything. That was a dumb question, anyway.”

    “It wasn’t a dumb question,” Gally says. “I freaking _kissed_ you, you get to ask questions.”

    “I was fine with that, though,” Thomas says. If he’s not mistaken, he thinks there might be pink forming on Gally’s face. Did he just make Gally _blush_?

    “That’s… that’s good,” Gally says. “It’s late, and I’ve got a lot to do tomorrow, so I guess I should try to go sleep.”

    Thomas nods. “Okay, I should too. But,” Gally raises his eyebrows as Thomas speaks, “come to me, alright? I’m here if you need something.”

    “Thank you,” Gally says. “I’m not great—or even _okay_ —at advice, but if you ever need it, I can try.”

    “Thanks,” Thomas says, offering him a small smile. “Goodnight, Gally.”

    “Night, Thomas,” Gally says, before turning on his heels and giving Thomas a hint of a smile before exiting.

 

  
Thomas isn’t sure how many hours have passed when he hears another knock at his door. It’s quick and quiet, so he almost thinks he’s imagined it, but he decides to get up and answer it anyway incase he hadn’t.

    When he opens his door, the figure that’d been walking away from it turns around to face Thomas.

    “Gally?” Thomas asks, his voice cracking from his tiredness. He’s so tired that it takes him a moment to notice the tears streaking Gally’s face, Thomas’ eyes widening at the realization. “Come in.”

    There’s a moment of hesitation, but Gally obliges, sticking close to the wall as Thomas closes the door. Thomas goes to the back of his room and turns his lamp on, then turns back to Gally.

    He’s wearing a big sweater—despite it being warm out—and he’s shaking, looking down at the ground. Another tear escapes his eye, but he doesn’t seem to care, not moving from his position.

    “Talk to me,” Thomas says. “Come, sit on my bed.”

    Gally looks up at Thomas now, then to Thomas’ bed, then back to him.

    “It’s okay,” Thomas assures him, gesturing to a spot. He finally walks over and sits down, Thomas sitting next to him. “Do you want me next to you? Or do you need space.”

    Gally shakes his head ‘no’ suddenly at the latter, Thomas taking the hint and getting closer ’til their sides are pressed together. Thomas checks for Gally’s reaction, and he seems okay with it, his breathing becoming slightly more even, so he stays.

    “What’s this about? Do you—”

    “Can we just,” Gally cuts him off, his voice barely above a whisper and uneven, “sit here? For a while?”

    Thomas looks at him, Gally finally meeting his eyes. He looks so sad, so genuine and shaken up that it distracts Thomas from the fact that their faces are mere inches apart. Finally, he nods.

    “Sure,” Thomas says, leaning back against the wall. Gally follows his lead, sitting back and letting out a long and shaky breath.

    “Thank you,” Gally says, his tone seeming relieved.

    After a few moments, Thomas speaks one more time. “You’re safe with me.”

    So they sit there. And surprisingly, the silence is more comfortable than Thomas would have ever thought. 


	4. four

That’s the last thing Thomas remembers. Sitting there side by side with Gally, comfortably leaning on each other. So how they got to where they are now, Thomas has no clue.

    He wakes up on his side, not thinking anything at first. He’s lying down on his bed, that’s normal. He’s tired, that’s normal. What’s _not_ normal is the warmth beside him and under his cheek, arm and knee.

    Thomas opens his eyes and looks up to see Gally lying next to him. _That_ wakes Thomas right up. Gally’s arm is around him and Thomas’ face is resting on his shoulder, his hand resting on Gally’s chest and knee up on Gally’s thigh. _Oh my God._

    The thought occurs to him that even though this is odd, he’s _so_ comfortable. Also, from what he could tell, he slept well. He could easily just go back to sleep and wait for Gally to wake up. But he’s got to think more logically, meaning he’s got to figure out what would be the least awkward.

    So he ponders that for a while. A game plan. He ponders it while feeling Gally’s breathing under his hand and watching how peaceful he seems while asleep. While he’s thinking, he’s reminded of what Gally told him.

    He’d said he never gets any sleep. But here he is, sleeping as calmly as he could be. Thomas can relate to that, spending most nights up replaying everything he’s been through and thinking about the cure and the world. It’s rare that he sleeps this nicely.

    All of this takes up his mind until he starts to drift off again. Unfortunately for him, he chose the wrong time to get comfortable.

    Gally stirs beneath him, and Thomas can’t make sense of it in his half asleep state. It’s not Gally’s stirring that wakes Thomas, though. It’s when he _stops_ moving.

    Thomas opens his eyes and is met by Gally’s gaze, once again the sight of the boy waking him right up. Immediately, he takes his hand and knee off of him, Gally looking down to see what he’s doing, before looking back at his face. Not moving before was a big mistake.

    “I…” Thomas trails off. There are absolutely no words. He can feel the blush rise quicker than ever on his cheeks, embarrassment swallowing him whole. Or, at least, he wishes it would. If the ground opened up right now and sucked him in, he wouldn’t protest.

    “H-how did—” Gally cuts himself off, his face melting into realization. His voice is groggy and low, and Thomas hates himself for noticing.

    “I don’t know,” Thomas says, propping himself up on his elbow and rubbing his eye with his other hand, attempting to be casual. “We, uh, must have fallen asleep at some point.”

    “We must’ve,” Gally agrees, moving his arm from under Thomas, who doesn’t love the lack of contact. “I shouldn’t have come in here, I’m-I’m sorry.”

    “Hey, listen,” Thomas says, facing Gally. Luckily, he seems to be embarrassed as well. That gives Thomas an advantage. The ability to be honest. “I’m glad you came to me. Like I said—”

    “I’m safe with you,” Gally interrupts softly, gazing up at Thomas.

    Thomas can’t help the slight smile that makes its way onto his lips. “Exactly.”

    The two boys spend a few prolonged moments just looking at each other, and Thomas can tell neither of them particularly want to move. Well, he knows at least _he_ doesn’t want to, especially now that the embarrassment has faded.

    “I guess we finally both got some sleep,” Thomas speaks again, breaking the silence.

    “Guess so,” Gally says, sitting up with a small groan, stretching slightly while Thomas forces himself to not watch his shoulders move.

    “That’s a good thing,” Thomas says, Gally nodding in response. “So we’ve agreed, no awkwardness between us? We’ll talk, we’ll be—”

    Gally looks back at Thomas, obviously waiting for him to finish his sentence. But Thomas doesn’t _have_ an end to the statement. He was going to say ‘friends’, but stopped himself. Does he not want to be friends? Does he want more? Or is this strictly a platonic relationship?

    “You know what I mean,” Thomas finally says.

    “Sure,” Gally says, Thomas hoping it’s genuine. He yawns, looking towards the door. “It’s probably late, so I should go.”

    “Yeah, I’ll get up soon, too,” Thomas says, not surprised at Gally’s leaving but disappointed that he’ll lose the comfort.

    Gally gets up off the bed, Thomas watching him walk towards the door. Right as he’s about to leave, he turns around.

    “Oh, and Thomas?” he says. Thomas sits up fully, raising his eyebrows in questioning. “I need a full list of names for the building by tomorrow.”

    “Oh,” Thomas says, Gally’s statement throwing him. For a moment he’d thought Gally was going to say something meaningful, definitely not a work related demand. “Sure.”

    Gally opens the door, then stops. He looks back one more time, meeting Thomas’ eyes fully. “And… thanks.”

    Thomas smiles as Gally closes the door behind him. In fact, he’s smiling a little _too_ much. _Shuck_.

 

  
“Minho, Brenda, can I talk to you guys for a second?” Thomas asks, interrupting their conversation.

    The whole day, he’s somehow avoided speaking to Gally since he’d left. Not because he doesn’t want to, but because he can’t keep this to himself anymore. He needs a second opinion before he can say anything else to him.

    “What about?” Brenda asks.

    “Can we do it in private?” Thomas asks, quickly glancing around to make sure Gally’s not nearby.

    “Is everything alright, Thomas?” Minho asks, looking concerned now.

    “I’m fine, I just need to run something by you,” Thomas says, looking between the two of them.

    After a few more questioning looks, Thomas manages to drag his friends back to his room, closing the door behind them. He runs a hand through his hair, huffing before looking at them, being met with expectant faces.

    This is going to be a lot more difficult than he’d thought.

    “You’re freaking me out, dude,” Minho says.

    “Sorry, I just… don’t know where to start,” Thomas says.

    “Alright, then just tell us what it is in general and go from there,” Brenda says, putting a hand on her hip.

    Thomas takes a deep breath. “It’s about Gally.”

    “What’d he do now?” Minho asks.  
  
    “Nothing,” Thomas says. “Well, not nothing. He didn’t do anything wrong.”

    “Get to the point, shank,” Minho says, his tone laced with fake annoyance.

    “Yeah, Thomas, what ab—”

    “Gally kissed me.” The words come out rushed and louder than he’d intended, Thomas looking for their reactions afterwards.

    They seem to be about the same. Stunned into silence, lips slightly parted and eyes wide. It almost makes Thomas laugh, how in sync it is. But he’s far too nervous to laugh right now.

    Finally, their reactions turn into something that Thomas can only describe as amused, Minho raising his eyebrows.

    “Okay, start from the beginning. I’ve _got_ to hear this,” he says, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall.

    Thomas tells them the whole story, only getting interrupted a few times. Gally telling Thomas he thought he still hated him, the bonfire (which Minho forgives him for momentarily ditching), the awkwardness the day after, their conversation last night, all the way ’til waking up this morning. They look like they’re having a lot more fun than they should with it, based off the goofy smiles they’ve both got when he finishes.

    “So?” Thomas asks. “What do I do? What do you think?”

    “I _think_ that we need to get Fry in here,” Brenda says, Minho quickly nodding in agreement.

    Somehow they wound up all sitting down, Thomas and Minho on the bed and Brenda sitting in the chair next to it. Thomas turns his body towards Brenda now, giving her his have-you-gone-crazy look.

    “What? Why?” Thomas asks.

    “Fry knows Gally better than any of us. If anyone could help work this out, it’s him,” Brenda says.

    “So glad I called you guys in, then,” Thomas says, his voice dripping with a sarcasm they seem to ignore.

    “I can’t believe Gally’s into you,” Minho says, shaking his head in disbelief.

    “First, I’m gonna try not to take that the wrong way. Second, he might not be,” Thomas says, turning to address Minho, then to Brenda. “Third, we are _not_ telling Fry.”

    “Thomas, Gally’s the _worst_ at showing emotions. If he kissed you, he’s into you. Not to mention everything else,” Minho says.

    Thomas had glossed over a few details when telling them the story. Certain things Gally had said, those were personal. So he kept the majority to himself, only giving them vague descriptions of their conversations.

    “Why won’t you tell Fry?” Brenda asks.

    “For exactly the reason you think I should,” Thomas says. “He knows Gally better than anyone. He might tell him, or think I like him.”

    “ _Do_ you like him?” Brenda asks.

    The delayed few seconds between the question and Thomas’ response make his friends start laughing. “I don’t… I don’t know. That’s not the issue.”

    “Either way, Fry is trustworthy. Even if he told Gally, what would be the big deal?” Brenda says.

    “I don’t want him to know I’ve told other people,” Thomas says. “There’s no way he’ll trust me after that.”

    They seem to consider this, before Minho speaks again. “I still think we should tell Fry. Like Brenda said, he’s a good friend. He won’t do anything to hurt you and your boyfriend.”

    Thomas rolls his eyes, but he’s got to admit, they’ve got a point. “Fine… Brenda can you go ask him when his break is?”

    Brenda stands up before he can even finish his sentence, bolting for the door. “Way ahead of you,” she says, flashing him a smile before exiting.

    This is becoming a way bigger deal than Thomas wanted it to be. He’s not sure what he wanted from them—maybe just a simple opinion on whether Gally has feelings for Thomas or not—but it certainly wasn’t this.

    Then again, why would he expect any different? This is Gally they’re talking about. Thomas and Gally. Gally and Thomas.

    “You know, the more I think about it, you guys would make a good looking couple,” Minho says, staring off into the corner thoughtfully.

    “Shut up,” Thomas says, earning a smirk from Minho.

    “You’ve got that whole height difference thing going. He’s tall and brooding, you’re short and optimistic. Enemies to lovers. I like that,” he continues.

    “Minho, I will actually punch you,” Thomas says, fighting off a blush at his use of the word ‘lovers’.

    “But seriously, man. Now that you’ve told me all this, there’s no doubt in my mind. I’ve caught him staring at you on a few occasions, I just figured he still hated you,” Minho says.

    “Really?” Thomas asks, hoping it doesn’t come across as desperate. “How could I not have noticed?”

    “Well, up until recently all we had time to think about was survival. Things are different now, we can actually start living,” Minho says.

    Thomas actually smiles at that. For some reason, it takes a bit of the guilt and worry off of his shoulders.

    “Yeah,” he says. “Yeah, you’re right.”

    It takes another minute or two, but the door eventually opens, revealing an excited Brenda and a confused looking Frypan.

    “Tell him what you told us,” Brenda says, closing the door.

    Thomas sighs. “Come sit down.” 


	5. five

He goes over Fry’s words in his head as he summons the courage to knock on the door. His sheepish smile as he told Thomas how happy he was about the developments, his hesitation to admit the information he’d known. All Thomas can hope now, is that he’s right.

    Finally, he brings his fist up and taps on the door, his heart racing. It’s time to settle this.

    Thomas would be lying if he said he doesn’t consider turning around and walking away about fifty times in the ten seconds it takes for the door to open. But he doesn’t. He miraculously stands his ground as he looks up to meet the eyes of the boy in front of him.

    “Thomas?” Gally asks, Thomas not missing the way his eyes quickly give him a once-over.

    _Now or never_.

    Before his nerves can talk him out of it, Thomas steps forward, finds the back of Gally’s neck with his hand, and brings their lips together all in one moment.

    The second it takes for him to kiss back is one of the longest Thomas has ever known. But once he does, putting his hands on Thomas’ waist and leaning into it, Thomas’ heart finally starts up again.

    Gally takes control of it quickly, bringing their bodies closer together. Thomas’ other hand comes up to rest on his chest, feeling the warmth and muscle under his fingers as Gally’s explore Thomas’ lower back.

    The kiss isn’t hard or fast. It feels… safe. Gally’s lips are soft, Thomas notices, and move slowly against his. After a few moments, Thomas pulls away for air to see Gally looking at him with bewilderment, his arms still around his waist.

    “Let’s talk,” Thomas says, reluctantly moving out of his grasp and entering the room, a very dazed looking Gally letting him. After Thomas shuts the door behind them, he turns to face him.

    “Okay,” Gally says shakily, nodding in agreement.

    “I know you said it was just the drink, but after everything, I talked to Fry, Minho and Brenda about it,” Thomas says. Gally’s eyes widen and he opens his mouth to speak, but Thomas continues before he has the chance. “I spared a lot of details. But what I got from it was the fact that you don’t open up to a lot of people.”

    Gally nods again, looking nervous. “I don’t.”

    “Minho told me that now that we’re here, we can start _actually_ living. He’s right, but we’ve got baggage. You and I, we need each other right now,” Thomas continues, praying he doesn’t sound as ridiculous as he thinks he does. “If you feel the way I think you might, you shouldn’t run from that like we’ve ran from everything else.”

    It takes a few long moments for Gally to respond, but he eventually does. The amazing thing, is that Thomas can’t find a trace of his usual guard. “How do _you_ feel?”

    Thomas smiles at that. “Does it matter?” he asks, mirroring Gally’s words.

    Gally actually smiles back. “I see your point.”

    “Maybe it took me a little longer to realize, but we’re on the same page now, Gally. No matter how surreal it seems to say,” Thomas says, with a small laugh.

    “That’s good,” Gally says, the smile only growing.

    “But are you ready for the constant teasing that’ll come with it?” Thomas asks jokingly, trying to ease the tension.

    “I can handle it,” Gally jokes back.

    Neither of them can stop smiling, and it’s a great feeling.

 

  
“You’re kidding,” Thomas says, tracing Gally’s arm with his fingertips. They’re lying on Gally’s bed, Gally on his back and Thomas facing him, just like that morning. Only now, it’s different. It’s right.

    “I’m not,” Gally says, the soft smile on his face making Thomas feel at peace with the world. “I knew I could get your name out of you. Plus, you weren’t the worst looking Greenie we’d gotten.”

    “You thought I was attractive, so you fought me?” Thomas laughs. They’re on a roll with semi-embarrassing confessions, one of Thomas’ favorites of Gally’s being his flusteredness when seeing Thomas half asleep in bed the other day before the bonfire. Plus, the story of his shock after kissing Thomas. It’s even better than his.

    “It wasn’t a _fight_ , I was helping you! I didn’t actually mean to hurt you,” Gally says, laughing too. “Those thoughts went away a bit once everything went… downhill.”

    “I don’t blame you,” Thomas says, more seriously now. “You were scared. I can see why you did what you did.”

    “Glad _you_ can,” Gally says, Thomas hating watching his smile disappear. “I was still really aggressive from the Changing. I only started thinking clearly after Lawrence took me in.”

    “That’s all that matters now,” Thomas says, offering him another smile.

    “But I’ll always be guilty, you know? That won’t go away,” Gally says.

    “I’ll always feel guilty for not giving myself up to WCKD as soon as I found out Newt was sick. I’ll always feel guilty for not getting Teresa onto the Berg,” Thomas says.

    Gally is silent for a moment. “I know you loved them… I’m sorry.”

    Thomas’ heart drops for a moment, his stomach twisting. It’ll never get easier to talk about. “My point is… I’ve got guilt too.”

    “Newt wouldn’t have wanted you to give yourself up,” Gally says, “and Teresa wanted you to get onto the Berg. You couldn’t have helped her, even if you tried.”

    “Like you said,” Thomas says quietly. “That’ll never go away.”

    Gally reaches out and takes Thomas’ hand in his, intertwining their fingers before looking up at Thomas, seemingly for reassurance that what he’s doing is okay. When Thomas squeezes Gally’s hand, he relaxes.

    “Like _you_ said, we’ve got baggage. That’s what we’re here for,” he says, his gaze fixed on Thomas’. “You’re safe with me.”

    Thomas puts his head down on Gally’s chest, their hands resting on his stomach.

    “Thanks, Gally.”

 

  
The next morning, Thomas and Gally wake up (on time) tangled together after a more-than-decent night’s sleep.

    Gally wakes up first, Thomas opening his eyes to see the other boy smiling at him. He shares the gesture immediately, before closing his eyes again.

    “Five more minutes?” he asks, burying his head in Gally’s shoulder. Gally laughs, pulling him in tighter. Their legs are all stacked on top of each other, their torsos pressed together and Gally’s head above Thomas’ due to the height difference.

    “Time to get up, Greenie,” he says.

    Thomas pulls back, frowning up at him. “Greenie? _Still_?”

    “Only because I enjoy that look on your face when I say it,” Gally snickers.

    Thomas rolls his eyes and sits up, trying and failing to hide his smile.

    They get ready together, Thomas not wanting to leave in the same clothes he’d arrived in and therefore borrowing one of Gally’s shirts. Gally laughs at the loose fit, but Thomas welcomes the embarrassment. It gives him an excuse to blush that _isn’t_ seeing Gally without his shirt on.

    Thomas debates taking Gally’s hand as they walk outside, and it suddenly hits him that he’s _really_ never done this before. But looking at Gally’s smile makes it alright. They’ll figure it out.

    They stop outside of the kitchen at the same time, looking at each other.

    “Maybe they won’t be in there,” Thomas says.

    “As someone that gets up at this time every day, I can safely say they are,” Gally says.

    Thomas sighs. “Let’s get it over with, then.”

    When they walk in, Thomas spots Minho, Brenda and Frypan all talking. There’s a lot of people in there, so they have to push past them to get to where they are, Gally walking behind Thomas and grabbing his arm as to not get separated. Regardless of the cause, it still makes Thomas get a warm feeling in his stomach.

    Gally let’s go once they reach the group, all of them looking up at the pair simultaneously, smiles on their faces.

    “How are you guys on this fine morning?” Frypan asks, not even trying to disguise his tone.

    Thomas and Gally look at each other instinctually, before back at Frypan.

    “Just ask your real questions,” Thomas says.

    “Okay,” Minho says. “Did you guys hook up, or what?”

    Thomas reaches out and shoves Minho, making the three burst into laughter. Taking a quick glance at Gally, he sees that they’re both blushing.

    “What? You asked!” Minho defends himself.

    “Seriously, what’s the… deal? Were we right?” Brenda asks Thomas.

    “I’m right here, you know,” Gally says. Everyone looks at him, and his fake annoyance wavers as he smiles. “Not saying I loved the talking behind my back part, but I guess you shanks can be smart sometimes.”

    The group erupt into ‘I knew it’s, congratulations and jokes, Thomas and Gally both thanking them and rolling their eyes at the reactions. They’re not so different, after all.

    Once they quiet down, the group sit for breakfast together, making Thomas and Gally tell them what happened. Well, mostly a very embarrassed Thomas. But despite that, it’s the happiest he’s felt in a long time.

    He finds Gally’s hand on the bench between them and squeezes it while speaking, smiling when Gally squeezes back.

    It’s time to start living. 


End file.
